Our Philosophy of Learning

We Believe That:

Clear thinking leads to good decisions,
Good decisions lead to the right habits,
The right habits lead to character, and
Character becomes destiny.

Our Promises to Your Child

He or She will:

Learn to be a curious, independent learner.
Discover his/her strengths and use them to solve meaningful problems.
Respect the Earth as a natural resource, which needs to be taken care of.
Realize that dedication is required to develop real talent.
Understand the importance of character.
Cherish the arts, the wonders of the world, and the mysteries of life.

Our Beliefs

We believe each child has a gift that can change the world in a profound way.
We believe in a closely connected family of lifelong learners.
We believe in learning by knowing, learning by doing and learning by being.
We believe in economic, political and religious freedom.

Our Personal Story

Our Journey to Education

Andrea Loewen Nair, M.A., CCC

Head of School
Co-Founder

Education has always been a part of my life. My dad was a high school chemistry teacher, and the majority of our family friends were also teachers. Following in his footsteps, I took a Bachelor of Education and began my teaching career in northern, isolated First Nation’s reserves in Manitoba. I moved on to Calgary, AB, where I taught math, physics, and chemistry, in several schools in both public and private systems. I discovered a love of coaching badminton, track and field, and choir.

I enjoyed teaching and felt compelled to take the process to another level and so pursued a Master’s degree in Counseling Psychotherapy to better understand the students I spent so much time with. This is where I discovered a true love for learning and the potential of the school setting. It is also when I realized that my previous education, and even the education I provided for students, hadn’t and wasn’t doing all it could to motivate, inspire or help students be their absolute best.

I have thoroughly enjoyed learning more about how people’s experiences affect their behaviour, their feelings, and their thoughts. After completing my Master’s degree, I started a counseling practice until my children were born. My practice shifted to a parenting focus when my children arrived because I felt underequipped to be a mother of little ones. Ten years later, I am pleased to have become a well-known parenting writer. If you’d like to see my parenting page, I invite you to read through www.andreanair.com

I have been fortunate to teach at and be invited to speak at many schools across the country and I’ve keenly observed their best practices. I know that I want my own children to have the experience of learning in a way that will maximize their potential and am thrilled to have discovered Acton Academy. With their proven systems and methods, and our absolute love of learning, my husband and I are so excited to bring Acton to London, ON.

Vineet Nair, MD, CCFP

Co-Founder

My interest in education comes from honest self-reflection. I realize that I came through high school, university and medical school without having honed my critical-thinking skills or having a clear passion. I was able to memorize facts and regurgitate them on tests, and thus was able to get into medical school and succeed there. However I wasn’t happy and had to take a year off to sort myself out; luckily I was able to do so and have been happier and more driven in family medicine that I thought possible when I selected it as my career.

I’ve long been drawn to topics of self-improvement, change management and critical thinking. After having kids and reading Salman Khan’s One World Schoolhouse, I realized I absolutely agreed with him. Why are schools the way they are? How much time have I spent in school, and yet, in that time, what percentage of the information I was exposed to do I actually remember? If most medical schools now teach via Problem-Based learning, why do grade schools still rely primarily on didactic lectures?

Mr. Khan’s book excited me but I was unsure what to do about it. Eventually our family tried homeschooling as a means of utilizing some of the tools and strategies in education we felt were best. However, we realized that it wasn’t quite what we wanted for our children; we still wanted them to be part of a dynamic community. When we found Acton Academy we knew it was the right philosophy, the right community, and the right time for us. I am just incredibly excited to be part of this change in education and to be bringing it to London in the form of the Infinity School.